
Class _jrLii_ 

Book_._.JAA 



f y 



DISCOTJESE, 



DELIVERED AT THE 



C^iV Oj 



JfHiteral of |0|n M. 



TEINITY CHURCH, WASHINGTON, 



FEBRUARY 4, 1855. 



/ 
REV. GEORGE D. CUMMINS, 



WITH AN APPENDIX. 



WASHINGTON: 

PRINTED BY GEORGE S. GIDEON. 

18 5 5. 



Mf-5 



DISCOURSE. 



Remember, now short my time is : wherefore hast thou made all 
MEN IN VAIN?" — Psalm 89 : 47. 



We stand to-day in the presence of an overwhelming 
affliction. It is no ordinary sorrow that casts its shadow 
upon us. A whole community mourns the loss of a good 
citizen, faithful and true. This church mourns the loss 
of a firm and valued friend and supporter. Yonder be- 
reaved household mourns the loss of its revered and be- 
loved head, the tender, loving husband and father ; and 
many a home of poverty and obscurity mourns that the 
hand so often extended for its relief now lies cold and 
still upon the bosom. 

We have, however, another work to perform than 
merely to excite your sympathies 5 bear with us, then, 
while we turn from these personal allusions, to improve 
the sad event to our souls' good, and to draw from the 
Psalmist's words the great lessons of truth and duty, so 
appropriate to the occasion. 



It is a difficult question to settle, how far the truth of 
man's immortality was known to the Old Testament 
Saints. There are those who hold that the doctrine of 
immortality was entirely unknown to them, and that the 
Old Testament Scriptures are wanting in any allusion 
to the great truth. On the other hand, many contend 
that this truth was held as clearly and as intelligibly, 
by believers before the advent of Christ as by ourselves. 
The truth of the case seems to lie midway between these 
two opinions. The first is an opinion repugnant to all 
our notions of the character of God. We cannot believe 
that He would permit such faithful servants as Abraham, 
and Moses, and Samuel, and David, and the prophets, to 
go down to the grave ignorant of any life beyond this in 
which they should enjoy His presence and reap the re- 
ward of well-doing. And if it could be proved that the 
Old Testament Scriptures are without clear statements 
of this truth, yet God proclaimed it to his people by a 
more convincing evidence. The translations of Enoch 
and Elijah were visible demonstrations of a life beyond 
the tomb. 

The other opinion, that this truth was as fully re- 
vealed to them as to us, it is difficult to reconcile with 
the declaration that Christ hath " brought life and im- 
mortality to light by the Gospel." And this passage 
would seem to give us a clue to the true solution ; that 



the doctrine of the soul's immortality was indeed held 
by the Old Testament Saints, but dimly, as it were, 
through a glass, darkly — not in its full radiance, not in 
the bright light vouchsafed to us — yet held firmly 
enough to serve as a basis for their faith, and to excite 
their hopes of the glorious " recompense of reward." 

And it is by this statement that we are able to ex- 
plain many passages in the Old Testament, which seem 
to indicate despair concerning the soul's immortality. 
Such a passage is the text. It indicates one of those 
severe struggles between doubt and faith in man's im- 
mortality. It is, if we may so call it, an eclipse of faith ; 
a dark shadow rises between the soul and this glorious 
truth. And yet it is but an eclipse; the shadow passes 
over, and the Psalmist exults, " Thou wilt not leave my 
soul in the grave; thou shalt guide me by thy counsel, 
and afterwards receive me to glory." 

"We have a different use now to make of the text. 
The Psalmist's doubt, expressed in the question, " where- 
fore hast thou made all men in vain ?" was the result 
of a meditation upon the shortness of human life — "re- 
member how short my time is !" 

And it is our design now to show that if we miss the 
true significance of life, a meditation like that of his, will 
ever lead us to this result, " I am made in vain, seeing 
my time is so short !" 



Life is the deepest of all mysteries if we miss the key 
to unlock it. It is a riddle, a puzzle, a thing wrapped 
in inexplicable darkness and gloom, on any theory but 
one. 

Let us view it from the standing-points of a worldly 
philosophy, and behold how great is the mystery resting 
upon the pathway of life. 

I. Take then the theory of life according to this 
world's judgment. 

"What, we ask, is the great object of life? Happiness, 
is the reply : not the reply from an Epicurean school, 
confounding pleasure and happiness, but the reply from 
a nobler and better school. Happiness, it tells us, is tt : 
true end of life; enjoyment; fruition; that a man 
should enjoy the fruit of his labor under the sun. The 
perfection of man, physical and intellectual, the de- 
velopment of the faculties of the mind, the ripening of 
the soul into maturity of judgment, and the mellow 
wisdom of age. 

Such is the ordinary theory of life. But if this be 
the true theory of life, what terrible facts exist to prove 
that God has made man in vain. 

1. See, first, the death of so vast a number of our race 
in infancy. On this theory, what a profound mystery 
hangs over the fact, that one-third of the human family 
perishes in childhood. What is the meaning of this ? Is 



9 

it in mere wantonness, or for pastime, that nature makes 
sport of so precious a thing as human life ? Who can 
solve this problem ? If the true theory of life be, that 
it is for the perfection of the individual, then have not 
the countless myriads who die in childhood been made 
in vain, seeing their time is so short ? 

2. Take again the death of the young man. Gifted 
and aspiring, consecrated to lofty aims, his loins girded 
for the race set before him, life's long and beautiful 
vista stretching away in the distance, the angel of hope 
by his side, pointing to the shining table-lands of suc- 
cess : — just then he falls. 

" He, the young and strong, who cherished 
Noble longings for the strife, 
By the wayside fell and perished. 
Weary with the march of life." 

If, then, the great object of life be the perfection of 
the individual, who will deny that in him at least it is 
unaccomplished ? 

3. But pass on to a more advanced position on the 
highway of life. Take the death of the matured man 
in the midst of his labors, when most heavily burdened. 
It is the summer of life ; its fruits are yet unripe : the 
season of preparation has just passed by, and conscious 
of expanding powers, he presses on "like a giant re- 
freshed with new wine." Alas! the scythe of the 



10 



Reaper has cut him off in the midst of his daj's; a 
broken shaft is his appropriate cenotaph as the sym- 
bol of an unfinished work — an unperfected life. On 
this theory of life, has he not lived " in vain," seeing 
that " his time is so short ?" 

4. Go on, yet again, to the next stage : the autumn 
of life — the period of fruition; and here what a sad 
truth meets us ! It is this — that so little time is left for 
the fruition of man's labors, even if life be extended to 
its limit! How large a portion of life is passed in 
childhood ! How many j^ears must be passed in the 
culture of mind ! How much of the longest life is ex- 
pended in acquiring; in the pursuit, not in the pos- 
session! The capitalist absorbs life in accumulating 
wealth ; how little is the time left to enjoy it ! The 
statesmen is rewarded by eminence only at a period 
when many winters have whitened his head ; and that 
short time left to enjoy the labor of our hands is the 
period of all others when we are least capable of enjoy- 
ment. 

II. What, then, is the key to unlock this deep mys- 
tery ? What is the theory of life, which will reconcile 
the shortness of our time with the accomplishment of 
the great object of our creation ? 

It is this : Life is a state of discipline for a higher 
stage of existence beyond. Life is a j^rohatiou for eter- 



11 

nity. Life is only a stage of preparation and of trial, 
for an endless existence beyond the tomb. Life is the 
school-time of the soul's youth, where it is trained and 
fitted for a manhood of action and enjoyment in eter- 
nity. Life is the antechamber to the glorious temple, 
at whose altars we must be fitted to serve. 

What light is here ! The mystery of our being is 
solved. Now, we can ponder the brevity of man's life, 
and still feel that we have not been made in vain. 
Short as human life is, it is long enough to accomplish 
its sublime end, — our education for life eternal. It is 
long enough to fit the soul for the presence of God; 
long enough to provide the soul a " building of God, a 
house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." 
Nay, its work of preparation for eternity is generally 
done in the first half of life, and but rarely afterwards. 

Then, on the Christian theory of life, that it is a state 
of probation for eternity, the death of the young is no 
mystery. Life's great object may be effected by him 
who falls in life's brightest morning hour. And " the 
child may die an hundred years old." Not in vain has 
God made him who dies young, if he has lived for eter- 
nity; lived to make his calling and election sure. 
life ! short, fleeting — " a vapor," " a span," " a tale that 
is told," "a fading flower" — thou art long enough; long 
enough to enable man to prove that he was not made in 



12 

vain; long enough to educate the soul for immortal life; 
long enough, for moments are the seed-time for ages. 

On this theory, how truly may we say, of our de- 
parted brother and friend, whom to-day we mourn, he 
has not been made in vain ! If it be worth living for, to 
pass through life leaving an unspotted reputation and a 
good name, more precious than jewels, — then has he not 
lived in vain; for who ever stood before his fellow-men 
with a fairer escutcheon and a more untarnished name ? 
If it be worth living for, to win the esteem of a whole 
community, the love of warm and devoted friends, and 
the respect of all men — then has he not lived in vain ; 
for who ever possessed a larger share of the confidence, 
esteem, and love of society ? If it is a noble object of 
human aspiration to fulfil all life's duties faithfully 
and fully — to be equal to every position — to bear life's 
burdens honorably to himself, and usefully to others — 
then has he not lived in vain. And if it be worth a 
lifetime's labor to gain the titles of the good citizen, the 
true-hearted friend, the generous philanthropist, the 
tender husband, the loving father — then, indeed, has he 
not lived in vain. 

How fitly may the lines of the Christian poet, Words- 
worth, be applied to him : — 

" Who is the happy warrior ? "who is he 
That every man in arms should wish to be? 



13 



'Tishe * * * * 

Whose high endeavors are an inward light 
That makes the path before him always bright : 
Who labors good on good to fix, and owes 
To virtue every triumph that he knows ; 
Who if he rise to station of command, 
Rises by open means ; and there will stand 
On honorable terms,, or else retire. 
And in himself, possess his own desire ; 
Who, therefore, does not stoop or lie in wait 
For wealth, or honor, or for worldly state ; 
Whom they must follow, on whose head must fall 
Like showers of manna, if they come at all : 
Who while the mortal mist is gathering, draws 
His breath in confidence of Heaven's applause : 
This is the happy warrior; this is he 
Whom every man in arms should wish to be." 

And, above all, if the providing for eternity be life's 
great end, has he not been made in vain ? True it is. 
that not until his life on earth was about to close, did 
he make an open profession of the religion of Christ in 
the ordinances of His church, and we can but lament 
that the great influence of his high character was not, 
by an open acknowledgment of his faith, thrown into 
the scale of the Redeemer. But who can doubt for a 
moment that he was unmindful of his duty to God, or 
of his obligation to a crucified Saviour? If it could 



14 



be a matter of doubt for a moment, the close of his life, 
so remarkable for calm, steadfast confidence in the 
atoning merits of Christ, would leave us without anxiety. 
Such a close of life, a Christian's death, marked by 
everything that makes the Christian's death triumphant, 
proves how strong and deep was the hold of Christianity 
upon his heart and life. It was not like a sudden death- 
bed conversion, but rather the sublime rooted confidence 
of a believer in Christ. 

His death was marked by entire and cheerful resigna- 
tion to the will of God. Though surrounded by every- 
thing for which one might wish to live, yet did he bow 
submissively to the will of his Father in heaven, without 
a murmur or a single complaint. It was not the passive 
yielding of the fatalist to destiny, nor the cold sternness 
of the stoic scorning to grieve ; it was the Christian's 
confidence in the wisdom and goodness of God. When 
asked if he could commit the issue of his sickness to 
God, and resign himself into His gracious hands, he re- 
plied : — " Yes, all is peace, all is peace ; I am perfectly 
resigned to His ivill ; true, it would he grateful for me to 
live for the dear ones around me, hut if it is. the icill of 
God that I should go, lean die icithout regret" 

When asked on what his hopes for eternity were 
based, his earnest reply was : — " Only on the merits of the 
Saviour; I have notliing in myself on u'hich to depend, 






21 



eloquent and impressive discourse that was delivered in 
Trinity Cliureli — need not to be told that never was there 
seen together at the funeral of any of our citizens a greater 
number of heart-stricken mourners. 

The body was placed in a plain mahogany coffin and 
covered with black cloth. A silver plate on the lid was in- 
scribed " John AY. Maury, born 15th May, 1809, died 2d 
February, 1855." The pall-bearers were Peter Force and 
W. W. Seaton, ex-Mayors, John C. Rives, George Parker, 
Richard Smith, W. W. Corcoran, James M. Carlisle, and 
Jacob Gideon. In the funeral train, as it moved from the 
residence of the deceased across the street to Trinity Church, 
we noticed the physicians of the family. Dr. May and Dr. 
Jones, the officiating clergymen. Rev. Mr. Cummins and 
the Rev. Dr. Smith ; the Rev. Mr. Slicer, the Rev. Dr. Hill, 
and the Rev. Mr. Eliot, visiting clergymen. The Washing- 
ton ITational Monument Society, the Mayor of Washington 
and officers of the Corporation, the Board of Aldermen, the 
Board of Common Council, and the officers of the Bank of 
the Metropolis, followed in the mournful procession. 

Trinity Church was filled to its utmost capacity, and many 
there were who, not being able to get inside, were disap- 
pointed at not having an opportunity to hear the eloquent 
funeral discourse, which was delivered by the pastor. In the 
church were noticed the President of the United States, 
several Senators and Members of Congress. Among the 
latter was also noticed the venerable Thomas H. Benton. 



99 



coiipoiiatio:n' of WASHmaTON. 

Board of Aldermen, 

Saturday, February 3, 1855. 

The Board met pursuant to a call by the Mayor. 

Present : Messrs. Magruder, Dove, Eeed, Borrows, Evans, 
Hill, Pepper, Fitzpatrick, Houston, Clarke, and Marks. 

The Chair laid before the Board the followins: communi- 
cation from the Mayor : 

Mayor's Office, February 3, 1855. 

TO THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN AND BOARD OF COMMON COUNCIL. ' 

Gentlemen : — I have requested you to assemble to-day for 
the purpose of officially announcing to you the death of 
ex-Mayor John W. Maury (which took place yesterday 
about noon), in order to afford you an opportunity to pay 
that public tribute to his memory which is eminently due for 
his long, faithful, and valuable services in the Councils of the 
city, and as its former Chief Magistrate. 

Many of us have been associated with him in the Councils, 
have enjoyed the pleasure of intimate intercourse with him, 
and been honored with his friendship. There are few who 
have had better opportunities of forming an estimate of his 
character and his services, public and private, and I am con- 
fident by none will his loss be more deeply deplored. 

I shall be ready to unite with you in the sentiments of 
respect which you may deem to be due to his memory. 

Respectfully, 
JOHN T. TOWERS, 

Mayor. 

Which communication was read ; when — 

A message was received from the Board of Common 



23 



Council, stating that they had passed a resolution referring 
the Mayor's communication of this day to a joint committee, 
and had appointed Messrs. Busey, Barr, and Duncanson the 
committee on the part of that Board. 

The said resolution from the Board of Common Council 
was taken up, read, and adopted ; and Messrs. Pepper and 
Magruder were appointed the committee on the part of this 
Board. 

Mr. Pepper, from the said joint committee, reported the 
following resolutions, viz. : 

"Wliereas, we have learned with profound sorrow and re- 
gret of the death of our fellow-townsman, John W. Maury, 
former Mayor of this city : Therefore — 

Resolved, ^e., That we tender to the family of the de- 
ceased the heartfelt condolence of the authorities and people 
of this city. 

Resolved, That we sympathize with the people of this city 
in the mournful sensations caused by his untimely demise. 

Resolved, That the Mayor, Board of Aldermen, and Board 
of Common Council, and Officers of this Corporation will 
attend the funeral in a body, and wear the usual badge of 
mourning for thirty days ; and that the people of this city 
be requested to unite with us in these melancholy ceremo- 
nies. 

Resolved, That the Mayor be respectfully requested to 
communicate a copy of these resolutions to the family of 
the deceased, and cause the same to be published in the city 
papers. 



24 



TRIBUTES OF RESPECT TO THE MEMORY OF 
THE LATE J0H:N' W. MAURY. 

At a meeting of the Wardens and Vestry of Trinity 
Parish, held on Monday, the 5th instant, the following reso- 
lutions were presented by Hon. J. M. Brodhead, and, on 
motion of E. L. Childs, Esq., unanimously adopted, viz. : 

Whereas, since our last meeting it has pleased Almighty 
God to remove, by death, John W. Maury, one of the most 
efficient and beloved members of this Vestry ; therefore, 

Resolved, That, bowing reverently to the decree of Him 
who cannot err, we mourn for the excellence that has left us, 
and bear our testimony to the surpassing nobleness and 
purity of his character, which shone alike in life and death — 
a character harmonious, beautiful, and just. 

Resolved, That, as a member of this Vestiy, and as a citi- 
zen, Mr, Maury was ever ready in every good word and 
work, sustaining the welfare ot the Church and of society 
with an open hand and loving heart, with simple dignity 
and manly candor — with benevolence equalled only by his 
modesty — inspiring respect by his intelligence, and winning 
hearts by his kindness. We will cherish his unspotted name, 
and strive to imitate his noble example. 

Resolved, That, while we offiir to the bereaved family of 
our dear friend and late associate our heartfelt sympathy in 
their great affliction, we trust they may find consolation in 
the same holy faith that sustained him in the hour of death ; 
and that when they too shall depart hence, they may rejoin 
him in that better land where " all is peace." 

Resolved, That these proceedings be entered on the records 



25 



of the Vestry and published, and that a copy thereof be trans- 
mitted to the family of Mr. Maury. 

G. D. CUMMmS, 

Rector, T. P. 

Fred. Koones, 

Register T. P. 



At a Special Meeting of the Board of Trustees of the 
Bank of the Metropolis, on Saturday afternoon, the 3d Feb- 
ruary, 1855, Gen. James Thompson was appointed Chairman, 
and Richard Smith, Secretary. 

The death of John W. Maury, President of the Board, 
having been announced, the following preamble and resolu- 
tions were unanimously adopted : 

Whereas, the Board of Trustees of this Bank have heard 
with deep and unfeigned sorrow and regret, of the death, 
after a brief illness, of their late excellent and esteemed Pre- 
sident, John W. Maury, who has presided over their de- 
liberations for nearly nine years, and was associated with 
them in the management of the Bank for many years pre- 
vious, and who, by his attention to the duties of his office, 
his care of the interest of the stockholders, and his uniform 
courtesy and kind deportment to all with whom he was con- 
nected in business, won the regard and affection of his asso- 
ciates, and of the community generally ; and whereas it is 
the desire of the said trustees to express, in common with 
the whole community, their sorrow for the loss they have 
sustained: Therefore, 

Resolved, That the Bank be clothed in mourning; that 
the trustees and officers of the Bank will attend his funeral 



26 



in a body, and will wear the usual badge of mourning on 
the left arm for the space of thirty days. 

Resolved, That this Board offer to his afflicted family their 
sincere condolence for the great loss which they have sus- 
tained. 

And resolved further, That a copy of these proceedings be 
sent to the family of the deceased, and published in the 
papers of the city. 

JAMES THOMPSON, 

Chairman. 

Attest : Richard Smith, 

Secretary. 



At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of Columbian Col- 
lege, held on February 2, 1855, Col. Edwards, President of 
the Board, in the chair, it was, on motion of Dr. AVm. Gun- 
ton, 

Resolved, unanimously, That a committee be appointed to 
express our grief and regret at the unexpected death of John 
W. Maury, Esq., one of the members of this Board. 

In compliance with which resolution, the committee would 
desire to add its public tribute of respect to the memory of 
Mr. Maury, and to claim a part, in the general condolence 
offered to his family and immediate friends on this mournful 
occasion. 

As a gentleman of unblemished reputation, liberal in his 
charities and benevolent in his disposition, possessed of a 
large and enlightened public spirit, and valued for his public 
services, we feel that the event of his death is to be regarded 
as a calamity in this community, where for many years he 
has lived as one of its ornaments; and that his amiable 



27 



intercourse, marked by so mucli urbanity of manners and 
kindness of heart, will be no less missed from the circles in 
which he moved among the sociabilities of life, than his 
charities and counsels from his sphere as a citizen. 

We recognise in this event an additional proof of the un- 
certainty of life, and of the truth of the inspired declaration 
that "man at his best estate is altogether vanity;" and we 
would lay to heart the lessons which Divine Providence 
reads in it to all. 

We would especially tender our sympathies to his afflicted 
family, who have lost a husband and father most faithful 
and devoted, and commend them to the shielding care and 
paternal blessing of Him who is the husband of the widow, 
and in whom the fatherless find mercy. 

By a vote of the Board, it was 

Resolved, That this expression of respect be entered on its 
journals, published, and communicated to the afflicted family 
of the deceased. 

STEPHEN P. HILL, 

Chairman. 



Washington National Monument Office, 

February 3, 1855. 

At a meeting of the Board of Managers of the Washing- 
ton National Monument Society, held this day, the follow- 
ing preamble and resolutions were unanimously adopted : 

The Board of Managers of the Washington National 
Monument Society have heard, with deep regret, of the 
death of John W. Maury, their late valued and esteemed 
colleague. Regarding his death as no less a public loss than 
an irreparable bereavement to his large domestic circle, the 



Board of Managers perform a sad and melancholy duty in 
passing the following resolutions : 

Resolved, That they will, in a body, attend the funeral of 
their late colleague. 

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Board be directed to 
communicate to the family of the deceased a copy of these 
resolutions, as a recorded testimony of the aiFectionate 
esteem in which he was held personally and officially by 
every individual of his colleagues. 
True copy from journal : 

F. W. ECKLOFF, 

Clerk. 



-Metropolitan Railroad Office, 

Georgetown, February 6, 1855. 

At the regular monthly meeting of the Board of Directors, 
held this day, the following preamble and resolutions were 
adopted : 

The Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Railroad Com- 
pany, finding themselves deprived by death of one of their 
most estimable members, deem it proper to give expression 
to their feelings in the following resolutions : 

Resolved, That this Board find themselves unable to ex- 
press the deep regret they experience on account of the 
removal, by death, of their late estimable and much-beloved 
co-laborer, John W. Maury ; that in his death they have sus- 
tained an irreparable loss, and the Railroad a firm and valu- 
able friend ; and they can but respond to the already univer- 
sally accorded sentiment, that the community have been 
deprived of a member whose place cannot easily be filled. 



29 



Resolved, That the sympatliies of this Board are hereby 
extended to the afflicted family of our deceased friend. 

Resolved, That these resolutions be published, and that 
the Secretary of this Board be directed to communicate a 
copy of the same to Mrs. Maury. 

F. DODGE, 

President. 

J. W. Deeble, 

Secretary. 



At a meeting of the Jamestown Society, of the City of 
Washington, held at the United States Hotel, on Saturday 
evening, April 21, 1855, the following resolutions, oflered by 
Major James M. M'Rae, were unanimously adopted, viz.: 

Resolved, That we deeply deplore the removal from time 
to eternity of our esteemed friend and brother member, John 
W. Mauky, a gentleman who had ever at heart the honor and 
glory of his native State, and that we shall ever hold in re- 
membrance his honorable bearing and unsullied worth. 

Resolved, that a copy of this resolution be transmitted to 
the family of our deceased friend. 

P. E. FEND ALL, 

President. 
C. W. C. DUNNINGTON, 

Recording Secretary. 



30 



THOUGHTS 

SUGGESTED AT THE FUNEKAL OF JOHN W, MAURY, ESQ. 

It was the holy Sabbath, and heaven and earth 

Conspired to honor the lamented dead. 

The clear and cloudless sky hung its blue curtains, 

Concealing from mortals the realms of immortality ; 

While the glorious sun, proud in his majesty and strength, 

Trod undismayed, with unfaltering step, to his resting-place. 

This visible token of Omnipotence and mercy, 

Whose unostentatious but certain charities bless all alike, 

Stood brightly o'er a bereaved people, whose own sun 

Had set, to rise not on to-morrow. 

To cheer the hovel of the poor, nor bless the widow's heart. 

Nor guide the outcast orphan, friendless, in the walks of men ! 

Thus heaven kindly lent itself, while a nation's capital 

Poured forth its thousands, to join in the last sad offices of woe — 

The melancholy tribute of the living to the dead ! 

In that vast concourse all conditions of all men were found ; 

The nation's Executive was there, and there the Representatives 

Of all the people and the Sovereign States ; 

The ministers of Kings and Emperors were there. 

And from poverty's obscurest nook the poor came forth. 

To drop a rustic tear over their departed friend ! 

His generous heart no more shall dilate at their tale of woe ; 

His ear no more shall listen to their sigh of grief; 

The hand so oft outstretched and full with charity ' 

Lies palsied now upon his manly breast ! 

'Tis well to mourn the loss of nature's rarest children thus ! 

The great and mighty ones of earth lose nought 

In this tribute due to one who was their equal 

In true nohility — a good and an honest man I 



31 



And thus the poor assert the dignity of human nature, 

Which misfortune cannot stifle, nor poverty suppress ! 

Life has its triumphs, and so has death its victories ! 

The conqueror, at whose feet nations lie prostrate. 

Is flattered in the subjugation, and thousands court 

His smile, his nod, his favor ! 

The world makes haste to herald forth his fame — 

To bind his brow with the green laurel's leaf, 

And crown him with purple, and the index of royal majesty ! 

Enthroned, he dictates to the world, and it bows 

To every mandate of his will, most willingly ! 

Power thus swayed, and ambition sated thus, 

Have nought in them so honorable and so to be desired 

As this tribute of respect in life — 

The tear of oft-relieved misfortune when we die ! 

Deny me all else beside, but grant me this, kind Heaven ! 

Be my fame the eulogy of the poor j my highest honor 

And reward the consciousness of a well-spent life ! 

Like him whose burial prompts these feeble words. 

Let those whom I had comforted in distress, 

And relieved in want, be among my mourners ! 

c. 

Washington' City, February 5, 1865. 






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